Good evening, and welcome to the 10 o’clock news. Tonight’s main news:

A window cleaner has been seriously injured after he fell off his ladder outside the Western Side flats. It is thought that he became dizzy, lost his balance, and fell. It wasn’t until one flat’s owner returned to a smeared window an hour later that an ambulance was called. The man, aged 34, is said to be recovering in hospital.

An abandoned car has been discovered just off the city bypass. The burned out car, which was found on Thursday, is thought to have been stolen by joyriders. Police are appealing for witnesses to come forward.

Airfares are at their lowest since 1989, statisticians say. Recent additions to the number of chartered flights have helped this. However, it is thought that this trend will not last, and that prices will soon rise again, so get those holidays booked now!

A survey on pets has shown that people prefer cats as pets to dogs. The findings, by a nationwide animal charity, have been published in a report to coincide with National Pet Day. Cats are, according to the survey, easier to manage and cheaper than dogs.

University students are being asked to take part in a competition to find the country’s ‘smartest student’. Potential competitors are asked to fill out a form now and attend local competitions. The best 2 from each county will go head to head in a TV challenge later in the year. The winner will be given £30,000 and a trip around the world.

Now for today’s weather: This morning will be cloudy with rain in the North East. That should brighten up later, and we might see a few rainbows by the afternoon. The evening will be slightly chilly, with temperatures expected to be 9 degrees maximum. That’s all we’ve go time for today. Thank you for watching. See you soon.

The mp3 files and text on elllo are Creative Commons. Students and teachers are free to download, copy and distribute these materials for educational purposes. They are not transferable for commercial purposes.